


The Word Of Your Body

by TheSadisticMunchkin



Series: NU'EST Soulmate Series [2]
Category: NU'EST
Genre: Alternate Universe - Not K-Pop Idols, Alternate Universe - Soulmates, Aron is a Broadway Actor, Dongho is his beautiful confident self, Fluff, M/M, Minhyun is an artist
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-01
Updated: 2020-01-01
Packaged: 2021-02-27 13:14:38
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,472
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22067605
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheSadisticMunchkin/pseuds/TheSadisticMunchkin
Summary: You can communicate to your soulmate by writing on any part of your skin and they can see it on whatever part you wrote on.What happens when your soulmate is a young, budding artist and your entire body is his canvas?
Relationships: Hwang Minhyun/Aaron Kwak | Aron
Series: NU'EST Soulmate Series [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1588249
Comments: 6
Kudos: 35





	The Word Of Your Body

**Author's Note:**

> shout out to the minron peeps out there !! this one is for you <3

“Mom, there aren’t any serial killers in my area. I googled it.” Minhyun kept the door open with his foot as he listened to the long, worried tirade of his mother on the phone. The boxes in his arms started to wobble incessantly and he placed his cellphone on top of the pile he was carrying so he could settle it down on the floor. “Yeah, you can totally google how many serial killers there are in your apartment building. I asked the landlord and he said there hasn’t been a massacre in the building since 1958.”

_ “Not funny, Minhyun.”  _ Came the deadpan reply from his mother and Minhyun couldn’t help but laugh. His mother’s reactions were always a source of amusement for him.  _ “You know how I worry about you, sweetie.”  _

“I know, Mom. I love you too.” He knelt down on the floor with his phone now on speaker mode. “But you have to understand I’m 22 now, not 2. I can walk by myself now, Mama.” He took out a little plastic picture frame wrapped in bubblewrap and he knew that this was the one from his graduation without even opening it. “I’ll prove it to you when you visit in a month, Mama. You’ll see how grown up I can be.” He carefully took off the bubblewrap and stood back up to find a place to set the picture frame.

_ “You said the same thing during your High School graduation, honey.” _

“That was high school,” Minhyun waved it off with a flick of his multi bangled wrist. “This is real life. I have to learn how to go through it on my own.” 

With that statement, he was looking out the window, at the crowded, bustling city of New York and he smiled despite the nagging voice still emanating from his phone on the floor. The large window took up at least a third of the wall and he was already figuring out what color curtains he should hang up to compliment the view. “And yes I’ll try to get a job. It won’t be easy, Mama. You know how many artists live here in New York. But I’m sure I’ll manage.”

_ “There are  _ starving  _ artists in New York, Minhyun.”  _

“Well if I’m starving, at least I have a roof above my head.” He joked and he heard the audible sigh from the other line. 

_ “Just call me if you find a job, okay? I want to know if you’re really as responsible as you claim.”  _ Minhyun rolled his eyes and, realizing his mother can’t see him for the first time, he picked up the phone and pressed it against his ear again. 

“I’ll be fine, Mama.” He softened his voice to make sure she knew how sincere he was in doing this. “I gotta go now but I’ll call you if anything happens, okay? I love you! Bye!” He gave a big obnoxious kiss to the phone screen and hung up. 

“I’ll be fine, Mama. Just you wait.” He whispered to the currently box laden living room and he breathed it all in. 

The movers came by earlier and already placed the rest of his furniture in all the right places, which has given Minhyun an excuse to take a well-deserved break.

He flopped down on the couch by the wall with a satisfied sigh. “Today is your day. Just like it was yesterday.” He said to himself as he listened to the muffled hustle and bustle of city life from outside his window. It wasn’t that he  _ wanted  _ to move out immediately after graduation but he felt like it was the most strategic career move for him. His mother was right about one thing and that was the fact that artists have to fight tooth and nail to even be recognized by anyone.

But there was one thing that his mother didn’t understand. The reason why some artists don’t get their big break is that some of them give up easily. Their negative views on the world and how they will never see their works like they do ultimately brings them nothing but misery. Minhyun didn’t want to be a starving artist. He wanted to see his work in the national art museum. He wanted to showcase his talents the way they deserve to be showcased.

Even if he doesn’t become as famous as Andy Warhol or Vincent Van Gogh, he knows that those two artists didn’t get their fame overnight. Van Gogh was even hated by his neighbours when he was alive. If his hard work and passion is evident in his works, one day he will be revered as a great artist. One day he will prove all those naysayers wrong. 

“Alright Minhyun, stop patting yourself on the back and unpack the rest of your stuff.” He wondered aloud and walked towards the nearest box from the couch. He smiled when he saw that it was the first box of his art supplies. The markers were haphazardly thrown in and he cringed for he knew he had to properly organize that later. Nevertheless, he dug into the box with a fervor and randomly took out three colored markers: purple, pink, and yellow. 

Bright colors. He could definitely work with this.

He looked around him at the other boxes surrounding him to try and figure out where he decided to stuff his sketchbooks. Realizing that he was probably going to be too lazy to stand up from his position for a while, he just sighed and started drawing little yellow swirls on the expanse of his arm. Minhyun wasn’t sure how long he was adding details to whatever he decided to draw but by the end of it, his entire right arm was covered in doodles that could have easily passed as an extremely elaborate tattoo.

He filled in the lettering of his everyday motto in the middle of his marker masterpiece and he knew, as he sat in the middle of his mostly empty apartment, that he was going to make the most out of it while he’s here. 

Besides, today was his day.

* * *

_ “Today is your day. _ What the hell does that mean, Dongho?”

“What the hell do you  _ think  _ it means?”

“Someone broke into our apartment and vandalised my arm.”

“Wow. So inspirational. How have you not gotten a nobel prize yet with those words of wisdom?”

“Oh fuck off, Dongho.”

Aron scrubbed at his arm as the kitchen sink ran a constant stream of warm water on his red, pink, and yellow marked skin. “Why isn’t this coming  _ off?”  _ His roommate handed him another box of hand soap with a little shake of her head. No matter how hard he tried, the colors wouldn’t budge. He’s been scrubbing for about half an hour and his other arm was already pretty sore from the repeated motion. If he ever found out who did this to him on  _ opening night  _ of all nights, they will have  _ hell  _ to pay.

“Dude my character is  _ sleeveless  _ in this show. How am I gonna cover  _ this  _ up?” After another 5 minutes of wasted time, he decided to just throw the towel in. “Do you think Krysta will notice?”

“Um…” Dongho lifted Aron’s arm slightly and raised a perfectly pencilled in eyebrow. “Oh no, she won’t notice at all! The colors are so nude that they’re practically invisible!” Aron glared at his roommate for a solid minute, which caused Dongho to burst out in laughter. “Yeah you’re screwed, buddy.” Aron groaned in frustration, repeatedly hitting his forehead on the wooden cupboard above the sink.

“Careful there, tiger. You might forget your lines if you continue that.” Dongho essentially just patted him on the shoulder which didn’t exactly provide much comfort. 

“Cheer up, hyung. Think of it this way,” Dongho waited for his devastated roommate to look at him before continuing. “Maybe it’s your soulmate messing with you.”

“My  _ what?”  _

Dongho stared at Aron with all the disdain that he knew all too well ever since they first moved in together. Dongho came from an all-boys catholic private school and Aron came from good ‘ol American public school. He’s seen more shootings and bomb threats than actual school days. They met in college and he’s not exactly sure how they ended up being friends. “How the fuck don’t you know about soulmates? Don’t they teach you  _ anything _ at school?” 

“I’m sorry that public school education isn’t up to your standards.” Aron replied with a deadpan voice. “Soulmates were mentioned in passing. They didn’t exactly tell us how we’re connected or something.” Aron shrugged it off, always believing that soulmates were a load of bull anyway. 

“Besides, what does my soulmate have to do with my new colorful tattoo?” Dongho sighed again, he’s been doing that a lot lately, and slightly yanked Aron’s arm towards him.

“Okay listen up, flyboy. I’m going to make it as simple as possible here for you to understand,” Dongho gestured at one of the little purple and yellow swirls on his arm. “Basically, soulmates are connected in a very special way. Don’t get me wrong, it could also be platonic as well as romantic but anyway… One way to find out who is your soulmate is by writing on any part of your body. Your soulmate will see whatever you wrote on the same area you wrote on  _ their  _ body. In summary, it seems your soulmate isn't aware that this sort of thing exists.”

“Well, at least that’s one thing I have in common with them.” It was Aron’s turn to roll his eyes but he couldn’t deny that he was a little intrigued. “How come I never saw any other writings on my skin until now?” 

“Simple. Your soulmate has to be 21 and up for you to see whatever they write on your skin. You also have to be deemed a legal adult. I guess it sort of ensures a more long-term relationship.” Dongho shrugged and Aron bit his lip in deep thought. He didn’t want to admit that the drawings on his arm were starting to grow on him. Maybe it was the possibility that  _ he won’t be completely alone in life  _ or the sheer beauty of the swirls and combination of colors contrasting against his pale skin.

The daunting fact that he has somebody out there specifically meant for  _ him  _ was making him a little light-headed. All his life, he had to prove to people that he was good enough to be on Broadway someday. Even though people are just telling him he’s  _ just an ensemble member,  _ it’s still a pretty big deal to be part of something you’ve longed for your whole life. He’s worked his  _ ass  _ off to sing and dance with the big names he’s heard announced on the Tony’s. 

Maybe his soulmate would understand him better than they ever did.

He soon realized that he was drifting a little too deep into his thoughts when Dongho gently placed a hand on his shoulder. Dongho wasn’t a particularly sympathetic person so this was a new experience for him and it seemed he was having a bit of a hard time keeping it up anyway. 

“You okay, hyung? ” Aron absentmindedly traced the little phrase on his arm with an unreadable expression before he looked up at Dongho for a brief second.

_ Today is your day.  _

“Yeah,” He smiled at his roommate, still tracing the little purple letters temporarily tattooed on his skin. “I think so.”

* * *

A few minutes before the curtains rose on opening night, his soulmate’s artwork faded away.

If he hadn’t expressed his disdain for it so early in the morning to about half the cast, he would have shown how disappointed he was now that it was gone. Sure, it was a bit of a burden the first time around but as the compliments grew and the resentment started to wear off, he was starting to grow quite fond of the little purple, pink, and yellow creation that made its temporary home on his forearm. Nevertheless, it was showtime. 

But he couldn’t stop absentmindedly scratching the now blank canvas of skin.

“Something botherin’ you, hyung?” Dongho’s exaggerated Boston accent buzzed low in his ears as he watched the rest of the people fill up the seats in the Richard Rodgers Theater. This is it. He was going to make his Broadway debut in front of hundreds of people. Something about the fact that his soulmate’s drawing was gone made him a little more nervous than usual. “It’s just Broadway, Aron. It’s one of the most accepting communities on this planet.”

“It’s not that…” He managed to croak out as he turned to his roommate. “I’m just…” 

Aron sighed a little and scratched at the patch of skin where his soulmate’s drawing used to be. Dongho immediately caught the action and rolled his eyes.

“You know you can just write on your own skin, right? You can talk to your soulmate too.”

Aron’s head snapped up and he looked at Dongho with an astonished expression. “You think I could really do that?” 

Dongho gave him a tiny smile and patted his back firmly. “Try it out later.”

* * *

There were a lot of things that Minhyun hoped to see the first thing when he woke up. Maybe he would have woken up feeling like a Disney princess with birds chirping outside his window. He would have gotten an email from that one art school he applied to that rejected him before. However, a phrase written on his arm with large block lettering was not one of them. 

Most of all, he was not expecting it to say  **_“Hey, asshole :)”_ **

It took him awhile to process whatever the hell was written on his arm but nonetheless, it still made him extremely confused. Who would break into his house and write such a thing on his forearm? Granted, he was a pretty light sleeper so he would have been able to hear any intruders. Without a thought, he got up from his bed, with difficulty, to wash off the profane phrase from his arm and at least regain a little bit of dignity. 

When Minhyun got to the bathroom, he turned on the faucet and splashed some water on his face to wake himself up. Once his vision was a little bit clearer, he got a better look at the little message and pouted in the way only early morning Minhyun would pout. It still said  _ hey, asshole  _ with a little mocking smiley face. He stuck his tongue out at the drawing and he was going to blame it on the early hour.

Just as he was about to put his forearm underneath the now warm stream of water, the phrase faded away completely. Minhyun blinked rapidly at his now blank skin but, as if an invisible hand were writing it that very instant, a new phrase printed itself on his forearm with the same blocky lettering as before. 

**_Don’t try to wash this off yourself. I tried._ **

Before Minhyun could even comprehend the new message, it faded away again and was replaced with another message.

**_Try and write me back. I promise I won’t bite._ **

Now, why the hell would he follow whatever is written on his arm by an unknown entity? For all he knew, he could be dreaming right now or maybe even tripping on some unknown drug he wasn’t aware he took. Yet, he was intrigued as to what would happen if he responded. So he went back to his room and rummaged through the boxes he still hasn’t unpacked and took out a plain black sharpie. 

**What the hell is happening here anyway?**

Minhyun waited for a few more minutes for the mysterious person on whatever side to read until they responded right underneath his own message. 

**_I’m your soulmate. Crazy huh?_ **

* * *

For the past few months, Minhyun has learned a lot of things.

First, landlords are the devil's incarnate.

Second, his soulmate is pretty damn funny.

Third, his soulmate’s name was Aron.

He was already very much delighted that his soulmate was a guy, which made his identity all the more valid for him, but he also told him that he was a Broadway actor. Minhyun couldn’t believe it at that time and filled his entire forearm and upper leg with exclamation points so Aron could see how enthusiastic he was about Broadway. Aron cursed him a little as he did that during intermission so he had new tattoos during the second act.

Minhyun enjoyed talking to Aron. He didn’t exactly have a lot of friends in his lifetime so the fact that he had a soulmate in itself was a little exciting for him. Aron sometimes asked him to draw for him on lazy days and Minhyun would make him cartoon doodles to full-on paintings on his stomach. Aron enjoyed every single one of them. Minhyun hasn’t felt this connected with someone in… actually, he never felt connected with someone at all. Their daily conversations were the only things he looked forward to everyday.

  
  


**_Minhyun, can I ask you something?_ **

**Of course!**

**_Can you…_ **

Minhyun looked at the unfinished phrase for a second before Aron continued.

**_Can you draw yourself? I kind of want to know what you look like._ **

**It won’t be very good**

**_Don’t sell yourself short, Min. Please?_ **

Although he couldn’t see him, Minhyun could feel the anxiety bleeding through the words written on his skin. He didn’t have the heart to say no. It didn’t matter how long he’s been an artist though as he never made a self portrait. He wasn’t entirely sure if he could draw himself. Yet this was basically practice, right? Aron would forgive him if it didn’t look exactly like him. Aron understood him more than anyone in this world.

Aron deserved this.

* * *

Aron couldn’t stop staring at his chest.

The ink reflected in the dim lighting of the bathroom and gave the illustration a different glow that felt almost  _ ethereal.  _ He traced the careful, shaky, lines that cradled his skin in a tingling embrace. The colors blended onto his skin as if they were  _ supposed  _ to be there. They were  _ meant  _ to be there. Aron couldn’t stop the tears in his eyes when he saw the little motto that he saw the first time he knew Minhyun existed.

_ Today is your day.  _

Above his motto was a beautiful almost watercolor-like portrait of his soulmate. He wasn’t exactly looking forward and it seemed that his hair was in a disheveled mess but Aron found him absolutely gorgeous. His lips were of a soft pink and his eyes were the most mesmerizing shade of brown. He was pale and his face was pulled in just a little bit to reveal sharp cheekbones. If he looked more closely, he could see freckles darting the small expanse of skin that he decided to sketch underneath his face and neck.

He hugged his stomach, almost pretending that Minhyun was there with him. Honestly, how could someone so gorgeous be his soulmate? It’s almost as if he doesn’t deserve this man. 

“Is that him?”

Aron jumped a little but relaxed when he saw it was only Dongho. He nodded slowly and a smile pulled at the corners of his mouth when Dongho let out a low whistle. “He’s a catch, hyunh. You’re one of the lucky ones.” 

Aron didn’t want to say that he was lucky but at that moment, as he stared at the gorgeous image of his soulmate, it was extremely hard not to believe he was. “You might want to return the favor.”

“What?”

Dongho rolled her eyes and sighed. “Dude, you know how he looks like. It’s kind of unfair since he doesn’t know how  _ you  _ look.”

“But I can’t draw…” He replied slowly and Dongho just laughed.

“You don’t  _ have  _ to. Didn’t you say he also lived in New York? That’s just a… little nudge in the right direction. ” Dongho left him standing alone in the bathroom and Aron stared at the wonderful creation spread across the expanse of his chest again. It wouldn’t do him any harm right? It’s been almost half a year since they started talking. Minhyun has done so much for him already and it was kind of unfair for him to know how Minhyun looked like and not vice versa.

Minhyun deserved this.

So he took his sharpie pen resting on the bathroom sink, pulled the cap off and wrote the next few words that felt like could be one of his last.

**_Would you like to meet up sometime? I want to see this beautiful masterpiece in person._ **

He didn’t have to wait long for a response.

  
**It took you long enough. Yes. Yes I do.**


End file.
